NCJ Number
187598
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 28 Issue: 2 Dated: February 2001 Pages: 94-96
Date Published
February 2001
Length
3 pages
Annotation
This article describes a unique partnership between the Brevard County Sheriff's Office (Florida) and area hospitals that resulted in supplying automated external defibrillators (AED's) to the county's courthouses and will soon equip squad cars with AED's as well.
Abstract
Before sheriff's deputies were equipped with AED's and trained in their use, four individuals died from cardiac arrests in the county's courthouses over the course of 3 years. The equipping of sheriff's deputies with AED's was not as easy as it might seem. Although AED's are simple to operate, they are costly, running from $1,700 to $3,300. Getting the funds, however, proved to be easier than generating administrative support for the program. The county's hospital network provided matching funds from area hospitals to purchase five AED's. The clearing of some political obstacles and changing some traditional views of deputy roles proved to be a bit more difficult. Some police administrators were reluctant to add a medical role to law enforcement responsibilities. Administrators were persuaded when it was pointed out that police officers perform CPR regularly and that AED's are simply an added and more effective way of countering cardiac arrest by police officers who are the first to arrive at a scene where cardiac arrest has occurred. The county's 4-hour training program for deputies who use AED's complies with the standards of the American Heart Association.